Panthers playing at Camden Fairview tonight in 5A-South Conference action

Magnolia running back Amir Cooper (front) has his face mask grabbed while trying to block for ball carrier James’Darius Smith during action last week against Hot Springs Lakeside.
Magnolia running back Amir Cooper (front) has his face mask grabbed while trying to block for ball carrier James’Darius Smith during action last week against Hot Springs Lakeside.

Magnolia will look to get its 5A-South Conference football season on track tonight when it travels 35 miles north to battle Camden Fairview at Cardinal Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

“We’ve talked about ball control and ball security. We have to stop turning it over and shooting ourselves in the foot,” Magnolia head coach Mark King said following last week’s setback. The Panthers lost five fumbles in their 30-22 loss at Texarkana and gave up five fumbles during the 42-21 loss to Hot Springs Lakeside.

According to the Camden News, Camden Fairview holds the advantage in terms of meetings, winning 12 out of the last 19 times the Panther and Cardinals have squared off. The Cardinals loss to Magnolia at Panther Stadium in 2016, but has beaten the Panthers the last two years by an average of 12 points.

Last year’s meeting between the two teams was a sloppy one in terms of penalties with more than 50 flags thrown between the two. The Cardinals had a big night, racking up over 600 yards in total offense (350 on the ground) to win 38-20.

After two weeks of league action, Hot Springs shares the lead in the standings with Arkansas High with 2-0 records. The Trojans were picked to finish sixth in the conference, while Texarkana was favored to finish second.

Preseason top pick Little Rock McClellan, along with Hot Springs Lakeside, Camden Fairview and Hope are chasing the leaders with 1-1 records.

Magnolia and De Queen are both 0-2 in league play.

Other conference games tonight include De Queen at Hot Springs, Little Rock McClellan at Hope and Hot Springs Lakeside at Texarkana.

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